बगुला भगत
Human civilisation has undergone several stages of development, probably many ups and downs than we know of and we normally assume our progress only after the latest down that we survived. When everything got destroyed, we slowly lost touch with the mighty civilisations such as Atlantis, Indus Valley, Maya, Inca and Aztecs and probably many more that lie at the bottom of oceans.
We recount the days of humanity in places closer to rivers and water sources that ensured our collective survival. That age can be called an age of action. People had to work physically to make a living. Some refer this age to as the age of violence but essentially violence is also physical action used in a bad way. The Age of Action and Violence was characterised by tribalism and war. During this period initially, humans lived in small, nomadic groups, and survival depended on physical strength and the ability to defend oneself against nature, animals and other groups. This period was marked by the development of weapons and resulted in the rise of kingdoms and empires. From that time to today in the age of artificial intelligence, each of these stages has been characterised by distinct features, which have shaped the course of human history.
When the cumbersome barter trading system was eased by the universal demand for precious metals such as gold and silver, the world ushered in the age of the economy. Personal wealth was not safe and it required to be defended by physical strength. Therefore, it made no sense to individuals to hoard money that would invite more risk. Such a physical and economic environment has an impact on individual human behaviour and social life.
The real age of the economy began with the rise of industrial production and led to a rise in financial institutions such as banks, lending firms and stock markets. The world became safer for personal wealth and individual savings. During this period, the world became increasingly interconnected through trade, and technology advanced at an unprecedented rate. The age of the economy gave rise to some of the most significant advancements in human history, including the advent of electricity, transportation and air travel. The scientific progress was fuelled by economic interests and it required newer laws for securing intellectual property.
Such advancement depended upon information, a boom required better information handling than the existing print media which was slower. This led the world into the Age of Information in the latter half of the 20th century. It was characterised by the rise of the internet and information technology, data science etc. The world became increasingly interconnected, and information flowed freely across borders. The Age of Information also gave rise to some of the most significant social and political movements, social media influencing, online campaigns and privacy concerns. It also gave voice to the individuals who could express themselves without needing security from physical threats and economic manipulation and several whistle-blowers could shake up the world of rich and privileged. While a part of the world may welcome the commencement of the new age, the rest of the world remains affected by conflict, dominance and inequality. The ages of action and economy have not ended. The age of the economy has led to unsustainable levels of consumption and environmental degradation.
The world has now entered the age of Artificial Intelligence, which is characterised by increasing automation and change in production methodology. During this period, machines are becoming increasingly capable of performing tasks that were once reserved for humans, leading to both opportunities and challenges. AI has the potential to transform every aspect of human life, from education, healthcare, industrial production, transportation and warfare. An ethical and careful transition can ensure benefits for humanity and help subside the reaction to this change. Fear for change obliterated many human societies in the age of action and led to the rise of communism in the age of economy and industrial production. It may be time to let go of information patents and share the beneficial technology with the entire humanity.
While these stages of human civilisation may appear to be progressive, they are not. They only changed the way how we stored our earnings such as our efforts, our money, food information and intellectual property. Most things that have evolved are external, though they may seem to belong to humans. What belongs to humans is their mind and their body. A healthy and sound mind is catheterised by good thoughts and the capability to handle complexities and a good body is an abode of a great mind. The reality for the human race is to understand that humans have to survive, experience and evolve on this planet together while respecting its environment, supporting its ecosystem and returning the love and care that plants give to humanity.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming every aspect of human life, from the way we communicate, learn, work, and play, to how we make decisions. The money ensures that action is hired to secure certain outcomes, now with AI, the mind would be hired or owned and that will make money and hire action to secure an outcome. AI is a game changer and indeed a powerful tool with tremendous potential for good, bad and ugly. There are significant risks associated with its development and use. Certain imminent threats faced by humanity are as follows.
(1) Work-Life Balance: Our work defines us and also affects our lifestyle and way of thinking. AI has the potential to automate many tasks and jobs that are currently performed by humans disturbing the existing work-life balance. AI can be restricted to being an obedient and loyal servant. It also has the advantages of low recurring costs, less downtime, high dependability and low failure rates, a low or negligible threat to privacy, no moral implications and unquestionable support. AI would eventually replace repetitive tasks, such as factory work or data entry. This may lead to significant job losses where automation is most likely to occur.
(2) Bias and Discrimination: AI algorithms are only as unbiased as the data they are trained on. If the data used to train an AI system is biased, the resulting algorithms would perpetuate the same bias with greater amplitude and impact. This could have serious consequences on just handling people, information, and social media and would impact the communities.
(3) Privacy Concerns: AI has the potential to collect and analyse large amounts of data about individuals, which could be used to monitor, influence and manipulate people. If this data is misused for mean, predatory and wrongful purposes, it would turn into a big calamity not only for the existing population but also for how we raise our children.
(4) Dependence on AI: Humans have been living and learning on this planet with an ecosystem which allows them challenges and motivations. This ecosystem is bound to change the way we learn, work, play and entertain. AI is a more specialised, more informed, quick and optimum solution for people. It would eventually lead to dependence on it. Failure of a network or server has a crippling effect on a stock exchange, Bank, airport or airline. Over-dependence will quickly lead to the erosion of traditional skills and methodologies. It could lead to significant disruptions in daily life and serious consequences to the ecosystem.
(5) Lack of Accountability: A human is accountable for one's actions depending on what one attaches value to such as ideas, possessions, freedom, loved ones and life. That's how public ridicule, fines imprisonment and death sentences affect humans. Such values may not be held by AI. Also, the impact of the actions of AI is going to be large and far-reaching. As AI becomes more complex, it will become difficult to affix responsibility for its actions. This would create legal and ethical challenges.
(6) Security risks: AI systems could be vulnerable to hacking or may simply learn some ideas against humanity. This could lead to serious security risks, particularly if AI is used to control critical systems.
(7) Economic inequality: An idea can change one's life. The ideas are going to change the industrial production and commercial dominance of multinationals. The exploitation of earth's resources may increase and more complex with improper carcinogenic waste disposal. The benefits of AI could be concentrated in the hands of a few wealthy individuals and corporations, exacerbating existing economic inequality.
AI also has the potential to transform our world in positive ways. As we continue to develop and deploy AI, we must be mindful of these risks and work to mitigate them. This will require collaboration between researchers, policymakers, and other stakeholders to ensure that AI is developed and used responsibly and ethically. Ultimately, the future of humanity will depend on our ability to balance the use of AI and safeguard human interests.
